Category: News
Afternoon Briefing: What a federal ban on THC-infused drinks and snacks could mean for the hemp industry
Good afternoon, Chicago.
A winter storm watch will be in effect for much of northern and central Illinois and parts of northwest Indiana from 3 p.m. this afternoon until 6 a.m. Sunday, with possible snow accumulations of over 6 inches.
Snow will develop late today through tomorrow night, and will fall heavily at times — up to an inch per hour, especially during the day tomorrow. Daytime temperatures both days will remain in the lower to mid-30s, dropping to the 20s at night.
Travel will be most affected on Saturday, as snow-covered roads and reduced visibility will lead to hazardous conditions. Wind gusts from the southeast will reach up to 25 miles per hour.
Here’s what else is happening today. And remember, for the latest breaking news in Chicago, visit chicagotribune.com/latest-headlines and sign up to get our alerts on all your devices.
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The Rev. Gary Graf on Oct. 21, 2025. (Courtesy of Step Up, Speak Out)
Chicago Heights priest nears end of two-month walk to New York for immigration justice
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Cans of seltzer containing THC, the active ingredient in marijuana, speed down the canning line at Indeed Brewing in Minneapolis on Thursday, Nov. 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Steve Karnowski)
What a federal ban on THC-infused drinks and snacks could mean for the hemp industry
Buried in the bill that ended the federal government shutdown this month was a provision to ban beverages and snacks made from hemp, which have proliferated across the country in recent years. Now the $24 billion hemp industry is scrambling to save itself before the provision takes effect in November 2026. Read more here.
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Nick Martinelli scores 28, but Northwestern rally falls short vs. Oklahoma State at United Center
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Jessie Buckley, left, and Paul Mescal in “Hamnet.” (Focus Features/ZUMA Press/TNS)
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Enveloped in soft green, the forest holds Agnes (Jessie Buckley) with the comfort and safety of a womb. Curled up in a centuries-old tree root, she is cradled by the lineage of her mother and the mothers before her, who walked out of the forest knowing of plants and dirt and animals. When she strides out of the woods in her red dress, a powerful hawk on her arm, a young tutor peering out of an attic classroom window is struck dumb at the sight of her. A man of words and letters, William (Paul Mescal) doesn’t quite know what to say. Read more here.
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Paris prosecutor says arrested man is thought to be 4th member of Louvre heist gang
PARIS — A man arrested by French police earlier this week is thought to be the fourth member of the team that stole France’s crown jewels from the Louvre Museum, the Paris prosecutor said Friday, meaning that the entire gang that carried out the brazen heist is now believed to have been caught.
Prosecutor Laure Beccuau, whose office is heading the investigation, said the 39-year-old man has a criminal record, with six previous convictions, including for receiving stolen goods, for which he was given a 2-month suspended prison sentence in 2010.
He has now been handed preliminary charges of robbery by an organized gang, punishable by 15 years imprisonment, and criminal conspiracy, which can carry a 10-year sentence if he is convicted for his suspected role in the stunning Oct. 19 theft at the world’s most-visited museum. The robbery gang’s haul of loot was worth an estimated 88 million euros ($102 million) — a monetary value that didn’t include the jewels’ huge historical value to France.
The prosecutor’s statement didn’t say what role, exactly, the man is thought to have played in the daylight heist, carried out with angle grinders, a freight lift and subterfuge, with robbers dressed as workers in bright vests.
Three other people also taken into police custody for questioning this week have been released without charge, the prosecutor said.
Police investigators are continuing their work “to locate the stolen jewels and to precisely determine each person’s role in this organized criminal group, as well as to clarify how the theft was planned and perpetrated,” she said.
The robbery is believed to have been carried out by a four-person team — with two breaking into the museum’s ornate Apollo Gallery where the jewels were displayed and then being whisked away on motorbikes by two associates who waited outside.
Three men, the robbery team’s other suspected members, were arrested in October and handed preliminary charges of theft by an organized gang and criminal conspiracy. DNA traces were found at the scene or on items linked to the robbery.
Police also arrested a woman in October. She faces preliminary charges of complicity in theft and criminal conspiracy. She is the longtime partner of one of the alleged robbers. The couple have children together and live in the northern suburbs of Paris, also home to other suspects.
The woman denied any involvement, her lawyer said.
The haul hasn’t been recovered. It includes a diamond-and-emerald necklace Napoleon gave to Empress Marie-Louise, jewels tied to 19th-century Queens Marie-Amélie and Hortense, and Empress Eugénie’s pearl-and-diamond tiara.
The robbery has focused attention on security at the Louvre. The museum’s director has acknowledged a ″terrible failure” and promised the installation of new surveillance cameras and anti-intrusion systems.
The thieves took less than eight minutes to force their way into the museum and leave, using a freight lift to reach one of the building’s windows. Footage from museum cameras showed that the two who broke into the Apollo Gallery used grinders to cut into jewelry display cases.
The emerald-set imperial crown of Napoleon III’s wife, Empress Eugénie, containing more than 1,300 diamonds, was later found outside the museum.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/11/28/paris-prosecutor-4th-member-louvre-heist-gang/
Fiscal de París: Se cree que hombre arrestado esta semana es 4to miembro de banda del robo al Louvre
Por JOHN LEICESTER
PARÍS (AP) — Un hombre arrestado por la policía francesa esta semana se cree que es el cuarto miembro del equipo que robó las joyas de la corona de Francia del Museo del Louvre, indicó la fiscal de París el viernes, lo que significa que al parecer toda la banda que llevó a cabo el audaz robo ha sido capturada.
La fiscal Laure Beccuau, cuya agencia encabeza la investigación, dijo que el hombre de 39 años cuenta con antecedentes penales, con seis condenas previas, incluyendo la recepción de bienes robados, por lo cual recibió una sentencia de prisión suspendida de dos meses en 2010.
Ahora se le han imputado cargos preliminares de robo por una banda organizada, castigable con 15 años de prisión, y conspiración criminal, que puede conllevar una sentencia de 10 años de prisión si es condenado por su presunto papel en el sorprendente robo del 19 de octubre en el museo más visitado del mundo. El botín de la banda de ladrones tenía un valor estimado de 88 millones de euros (102 millones de dólares), un valor monetario que no incluía el enorme valor histórico de las joyas para Francia.
La declaración de la fiscal no especificó qué papel exactamente se cree que el hombre desempeñó en el robo cometido a plena luz del día y con amoladoras, un montacargas y subterfugios, y en el cual los ladrones actuaron vestidos como trabajadores con chalecos brillantes.
Otras tres personas también detenidas para ser interrogadas esta semana han sido liberadas sin cargos, dijo la fiscal.
Los investigadores policiales continúan su trabajo “para localizar las joyas robadas y determinar con precisión el papel de cada persona en este grupo criminal organizado, así como para aclarar cómo se planificó y perpetró el robo”, explicó.
Se cree que el robo fue llevado a cabo por un equipo de cuatro personas, con dos de ellos irrumpiendo en la ornamentada Galería de Apolo del museo donde se exhibían las joyas antes de huir en motocicletas conducidas por dos cómplices que esperaban afuera.
Tres hombres, los otros presuntos miembros del equipo de robo, fueron arrestados en octubre y se les imputaron cargos preliminares de robo por una banda organizada y conspiración criminal. Se encontraron rastros de ADN en la escena o en objetos vinculados al robo.
La policía también arrestó a una mujer en octubre. Ella enfrenta cargos preliminares de complicidad en robo y conspiración criminal. Desde hace ya tiempo es la pareja de uno de los presuntos ladrones. La pareja tiene hijos juntos y vive en los suburbios del norte de París, hogar también de otros sospechosos.
La mujer negó cualquier implicación, dijo su abogado.
El botín no ha sido recuperado. Incluye un collar de diamantes y esmeraldas que Napoleón regaló a la emperatriz María Luisa, joyas vinculadas a las reinas del siglo XIX María Amalia y Hortensia, y la tiara de perlas y diamantes de la emperatriz Eugenia.
El robo ha centrado la atención en la seguridad del Louvre. El director del museo ha reconocido un “terrible fallo” y prometió la instalación de nuevas cámaras de vigilancia y sistemas antirrobo.
Los ladrones tardaron menos de ocho minutos en abrirse paso en el museo y salir, utilizando un montacargas para llegar a una de las ventanas del edificio. Las imágenes de las cámaras del museo mostraron que los dos que irrumpieron en la Galería de Apolo usaron amoladoras para cortar las vitrinas de joyas.
La corona imperial de esmeraldas de la esposa de Napoleón III, la emperatriz Eugenia, que contiene más de 1.300 diamantes, fue encontrada posteriormente fuera del museo.
___
Esta historia fue traducida del inglés por un editor de AP con la ayuda de una herramienta de inteligencia artificial generativa.
What a federal ban on THC-infused drinks and snacks could mean for the hemp industry
MINNEAPOLIS — The production lines at Indeed Brewing moved quickly, the cans filling not with beer, but with THC-infused seltzer. The product, which features the compound that gets cannabis users high, has been a lifeline at Indeed and other craft breweries as alcohol sales have fallen in recent years.
But that boom looks set to come to a crashing halt. Buried in the bill that ended the federal government shutdown this month was a provision to ban those drinks, along with other impairing beverages and snacks made from hemp, which have proliferated across the country in recent years. Now the $24 billion hemp industry is scrambling to save itself before the provision takes effect in November 2026.
“It’s a big deal,” said Ryan Bandy, Indeed’s chief business officer. “It would be a mess for our breweries, for our industry, and obviously for a lot of people who like these things.”
Here’s what to know about the looming ban on impairing products derived from hemp.
Congress opened the door in 2018
Marijuana and hemp are the same species. Marijuana is cultivated for high levels of THC in its flowers. Low-THC hemp is grown for its sturdy fibers, food or wellness products. “Rope, not dope” was long the motto of farmers who supported legalizing hemp.
After states began legalizing marijuana for adult use over a decade ago, hemp advocates saw an opening at the federal level. As part of the 2018 farm bill, Congress legalized the cultivation of industrial hemp to give farmers, including in Republican Sen. Mitch McConnell’s home state of Kentucky, a new cash crop.
But the way that law defined hemp — as having less than 0.3% of a specific type of THC, called delta-9 — opened a huge loophole. Beverages or bags of snacks could meet that threshold and still contain more than enough THC to get people high. Businesses could further exploit the law by extracting a non-impairing compound, called CBD, and chemically changing it into other types of impairing THC, such as delta-8 or delta-10.
The result? Vape oil, gummy candies, chips, cookies, sodas and other unregulated, untested products laden with hemp-derived THC spread around the country. In many places, they have been available at gas stations or convenience stores, even to teens. In legal marijuana states, they undercut heavily taxed and regulated products. In others, they evaded the prohibition on recreational use of weed.
Some states, including Indiana, have reported spikes in calls to poison-control centers for pediatric exposure to THC.
A patchwork of state regulations
Dozens of states have since taken steps to regulate or ban impairing hemp products. In October, Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a bill banning the sale of intoxicating hemp products outside the state’s legal marijuana system.
Texas, which has a massive hemp market, is moving to regulate sales of impairing hemp, such as by restricting them to those over 21. In Nebraska, lawmakers have instead considered a bill to criminalize the sale and possession of products containing hemp-based THC.
Washington state adopted a program to regulate hemp growing. But the number of licensed growers has cratered since the state banned intoxicating hemp products outside of the regulated cannabis market in 2023. Five years ago, there were 220, said Trecia Ehrlich, cannabis program manager with the state agriculture department. This year, there were 42, and with a federal ban looming, she expects that number to drop by about half next year.
Minnesota made infused beverages and foods legal in 2022 for people 21 and older. The products, which must be derived from legally certified hemp, have become so popular that Target is now offering THC drinks at some of its stores in the state.
They’ve also been a boon to liquor stores and to small Minneapolis brewers like Indeed, where THC drinks make up close to one-quarter of the business, Bandy said. At Bauhaus Brew Labs, a few blocks away, THC drinks account for 26% of their revenues from distributed products and 11% of revenues at the brewery’s taproom.
A powerful senator moves to close the loophole
None of that was what McConnell intended when he helped craft the 2018 farm bill. He finally closed the loophole by inserting a federal hemp THC ban in the measure to end the 43-day federal government shutdown, approved by the Senate on Nov. 10.
“It will keep these dangerous products out of the hands of children, while preserving the hemp industry for farmers,” McConnell said. “Industrial hemp and CBD will remain legal for industrial applications.”
Some in the legal marijuana industry celebrated, as the ban would end what they consider unfair competition.
They were joined by prohibitionists. “There’s really no good argument for allowing these dangerous products to be sold in our country,” said Kevin Sabet, president and CEO of Smart Approaches to Marijuana.
But the ban doesn’t take effect for a year. That has given the industry hope that there is still time to pass regulations that will improve the hemp THC industry — such as by banning synthetically derived THC, requiring age restrictions on sales, and prohibiting marketing to children — rather than eradicate it.
“We are very hopeful that cooler heads will prevail,” said Jonathan Miller, general counsel of the industry group U.S. Hemp Roundtable. “If they really thought there was a health emergency, there would be no year-long period.”
The federal ban would jeopardize more than 300,000 jobs while costing states $1.5 billion in lost tax money, the group says.
Drew Hurst, president and chief operating officer at Bauhaus Brew Labs, has no doubt his company would be among the casualties.
“If this goes through as written currently, I don’t see a way at all that Bauhaus could stay in business,” Hurst said.
What comes next?
A number of lawmakers say they will push for regulation of the hemp THC industry. Kentucky’s second senator, Republican Rand Paul, introduced an amendment to strip McConnell’s hemp language from the crucial government-funding bill, but it failed on a lopsided 76-24 vote.
Minnesota’s Democratic U.S. senators, Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith, are among those strategizing to save the industry. Klobuchar noted at a recent news conference that the ban was inserted into the unrelated shutdown bill without a hearing. She suggested the federal government could allow states to develop their own regulatory frameworks, or that Minnesota’s strict regulations could be used as a national model.
Kevin Hilliard, co-founder of Insight Brewing in Minneapolis, said the hemp industry needs a solution before planting time next spring.
“If a farmer has uncertainty, they’re not going to plant,” Hilliard said.
Johnson reported from Seattle. AP congressional reporter Kevin Freking contributed from Washington, D.C.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/11/28/federal-ban-thc-infused-drinks-snacks/
Problemas ofensivos de Ravens se acentúan ante la débil defensiva de Bengals
Por NOAH TRISTER
Las señales de advertencia estaban presentes cuando Lamar Jackson y los Ravens de Baltimore tuvieron problemas para acarrear el balón de manera consistente para vencer a los Browns y Jets.
Pero después de que se desplomaron con la defensiva de Cincinnati, que había sido atroz gran parte de la temporada, no se puede negar que los Ravens tienen un problema.
Y Jackson es una parte importante del problema.
“Tenemos que ser mejores”, dijo el corredor Derrick Henry después de la derrota del jueves por 32-14 ante los Bengals. “No fuimos el equipo que necesitábamos ser hoy para ganar”.
En el partido contra Cincinnati, Baltimore tuvo la menor cantidad de puntos con Jackson jugando desde que los Ravens perdieron 17-10 el juego de campeonato de la AFC contra Kansas City hace dos temporadas. Después de que comenzaron 1-5 este año, Baltimore encadenó cinco victorias consecutivas. El regreso de Jackson de una lesión muscular ayudó, pero después de una sólida actuación en la Semana 9 contra Miami, no se ha visto su versión de calibre MVP.
En sus últimos cuatro juegos, Jackson ha completado solo el 56% de sus pases, promediando 7,0 yardas por intento, con un touchdown, tres intercepciones y diez capturas, lo que le da un índice de pasador de 69,7. El jueves, perdió dos balones y fue interceptado una vez.
Jackson ha lidiado con lesiones en la rodilla, el tobillo y el dedo del pie desde que regresó de sus problemas en el tendón de la corva, y de hecho el jueves se vio más ágil de lo que había estado, pero su precisión en los pases fue inusualmente pobre en ocasiones, y las pérdidas de balón fueron devastadoras. La línea ofensiva de Baltimore no ha inspirado mucha confianza esta temporada, y la combinación de eso y la repentina inestabilidad de Jackson en el bolsillo hizo que el juego por aire fuera inestable.
En un par de ocasiones, cuando los Ravens lograron una gran jugada, terminó mal. La larga recepción y carrera de Isaiah Likely casi resultó en un touchdown, pero perdió el balón justo antes de la línea de gol y Baltimore perdió la posesión. Luego, Jackson conectó con Zay Flowers en un pase profundo para touchdown, solo para que fuera anulado porque Flowers había empujado a un defensor.
“Solo sé que creo y estoy seguro de que vamos a resolverlo”, dijo el tackle Ronnie Stanley. “Lo sé, porque me aseguraré de que esta ofensiva funcione como se supone que debe hacerlo”.
Qué funciona
Con Joe Burrow de regreso para Cincinnati, esta fue la ofensiva más dura que los Ravens han enfrentado en un tiempo, y aunque la defensa se debilitó un poco en la segunda mitad, mantuvo a Baltimore en el juego hasta entonces. Los Bengals realizaron 80 jugadas ofensivas, pero tuvieron que conformarse con seis goles de campo, logrando uno de seis en la zona de anotación.
Necesita ayuda
Otra semana, otra actuación preocupante de la línea ofensiva. El novato Emery Jones jugó un poco en su debut en la NFL, pero no pareció haber cambiado mucho para lo que ha sido una unidad sorprendentemente problemática para Baltimore.
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Deportes AP: https://apnews.com/hub/deportes
El papa León XIV y líderes cristianos oran por la unidad en el sitio del Concilio de Nicea
Por NICOLE WINFIELD, ANDREW WILKS y MEHMET GUZEL
IZNIK, Turquía (AP) — El papa León XIV se reunió con patriarcas y sacerdotes orientales y occidentales el viernes para conmemorar un importante aniversario en la historia cristiana, en el sitio de una reunión sin precedentes de obispos realizada en Turquía en el año 325 d.C., para orar por la unidad de los cristianos.
León, el Patriarca Ecuménico Bartolomé I y otros líderes cristianos se reunieron a orillas del lago Iznik, sede del Concilio de Nicea del que surgió un credo, o declaración de fe, que sigue siendo recitado por millones de cristianos hoy en día.
De pie sobre las ruinas del sitio, los hombres recitaron el credo que, según León, era “de fundamental importancia en el camino que los cristianos emprenden hacia la plena comunión”.
“De esta manera, todos estamos invitados a superar el escándalo de las divisiones que, desafortunadamente, aún existen, y a nutrir el deseo de unidad por el cual el Señor Jesús oró y dio su vida”, expresó.
La oración marcó el punto culminante de la visita de León a Turquía y la razón principal de su viaje, el primero de su pontificado.
Un momento crucial en el cristianismo
El Concilio de Nicea tuvo lugar en un momento en que las iglesias orientales y occidentales aún estaban unidas. Se separaron en el Gran Cisma de 1054, una división precipitada en gran medida por desacuerdos sobre la primacía del papa. Pero incluso hoy, los grupos católicos, ortodoxos y la mayoría de los protestantes históricos aceptan el Credo de Nicea, convirtiéndolo en un punto de acuerdo y en el credo más ampliamente aceptado en la cristiandad.
Como resultado, celebrar sus orígenes en el sitio de su creación con los líderes espirituales de las iglesias católica y ortodoxa y otros representantes cristianos marcó un momento histórico en la centenaria búsqueda de reunificar a todos los cristianos.
“El Credo Niceno actúa como una semilla para toda nuestra existencia cristiana. Es un símbolo no de un mínimo, sino de la totalidad”, dijo Bartolomé, líder espiritual de los cristianos ortodoxos del mundo.
Al inicio del servicio de oración, dijo que se reunían no solo para recordar el pasado.
“Estamos aquí para dar testimonio vivo de la misma fe expresada por los padres de Nicea. Regresamos a esta fuente de la fe cristiana para avanzar”, manifestó.
Una oración por la unidad
El emperador romano Constantino convocó la reunión de obispos de todo el imperio romano después de haber consolidado el control tras años de guerra civil e intrigas políticas.
Constantino no se convertiría formalmente al cristianismo sino hasta el final de su vida, en 337. Pero para 325, ya había mostrado tolerancia y favor hacia una secta cristiana que había surgido del último gran espasmo de persecución romana.
La versión del credo que surgió del concilio, y que hoy recitan los católicos, comienza: “Creo en un solo Dios, Padre todopoderoso…”.
La ceremonia conmemorativa, en la que se alternaron himnos católicos y ortodoxos, tuvo lugar en las excavaciones arqueológicas junto al lago de la antigua Basílica de San Neófito. Se cree que los cimientos de piedra de la basílica, que fueron descubiertos recientemente por el retroceso de las aguas del lago, están en el sitio de una iglesia anterior que albergó el concilio hace 1.700 años.
Además de León y Bartolomé, en la ceremonia participaron sacerdotes, patriarcas y obispos de las iglesias ortodoxa griega, siria, copta, siro-malankara, armenia, protestante y anglicana.
En sus comentarios, León dijo que todos los cristianos deben rechazar firmemente el uso de la religión para justificar la guerra, la violencia “o cualquier forma de fundamentalismo o fanatismo”.
“En cambio, los caminos a seguir son los del encuentro fraternal, el diálogo y la cooperación”, afirmó.
Una breve protesta antes de la llegada de León
Los cristianos son una minoría en Turquía, predominantemente musulmana suní, y antes de la oración en Iznik, unos 20 miembros de un pequeño partido islámico turco realizaron una breve protesta. Dijeron que el encuentro representaba una amenaza para la soberanía e identidad nacional de Turquía.
Bajo una fuerte presencia policial, Mehmet Kaygusuz, miembro del Partido del Nuevo Bienestar, leyó una declaración en la que denunciaba lo que, en su opinión, eran esfuerzos para establecer un “estado ortodoxo griego similar al Vaticano” en Turquía. El grupo se dispersó pacíficamente poco después.
Suleyman Bulut, residente de Iznik de 35 años, reconoció la profunda importancia histórica y espiritual de su ciudad para los cristianos y dijo que no tenía problema con que vinieran a honrar su herencia.
“Los musulmanes (también) deberíamos ir y visitar lugares que nos pertenecen en el resto del mundo, en Europa”, comentó.
Pero Hasan Maral, comerciante de 41 años, dijo que se sentía incómodo con la visita. “La llegada del papa aquí parece contradictoria con mi fe”, expresó.
Un impulso para la pequeña comunidad católica de Turquía
León inició su primer día completo en Estambul animando a la minúscula comunidad católica de Turquía a encontrar fortaleza en su pequeño número. Según las estadísticas del Vaticano, los católicos suman alrededor de 33.000 en una nación de 85 millones, la mayoría de los cuales son musulmanes suníes.
El pontífice tuvo una ruidosa bienvenida en la catedral del Espíritu Santo, donde fue recibido con gritos de “papa León” y “Viva il papa” (Viva el papa).
“La lógica de la pequeñez es la verdadera fuerza de la iglesia”, les dijo León en inglés. “La importante presencia de migrantes y refugiados en este país presenta a la iglesia el desafío de acoger y servir a algunos de los más vulnerables”.
Más tarde, León visitó a un grupo de monjas, las Hermanitas de los Pobres, que dirigen un hogar de ancianos en Estambul.
“Fue tan sencillo. Sentimos que estaba en casa. Se sintió muy a gusto. Todos obtuvieron lo que esperaban: una bendición, una palabra amable. Es simplemente enorme”, dijo la hermana Margret del Hogar de Ancianos de las Hermanitas de los Pobres.
El sábado, León continuará con su enfoque ecuménico, reuniéndose con Bartolomé y otros líderes cristianos. Pero también visitará la mezquita del Sultán Ahmed, comúnmente conocida como la Mezquita Azul, y celebrará una misa por la tarde en el Volkswagen Arena de Estambul.
León viajará a Líbano el domingo para la segunda y última etapa de su viaje.
___
Winfield informó desde Estambul. Los periodistas de The Associated Press Serra Yedikardes en Estambul y Suzan Fraser en Ankara, Turquía, contribuyeron a este despacho.
___
La cobertura de temas religiosos de The Associated Press recibe apoyo a través de la colaboración de la AP con The Conversation US, con financiamiento de Lilly Endowment Inc. La AP es la única responsable de este contenido.
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Esta historia fue traducida del inglés por un editor de AP con la ayuda de una herramienta de inteligencia artificial generativa.
Coup-Coup Birds: The DC Blob Is Cornered
Coup-Coup Birds: The DC Blob Is Cornered
Authored by James Howard Kunstler,
“Literally everything the left did, every line they crossed and rule they broke, all came back to slap them in the face.”
– Insurrection Barbie on “X”
Indeed, you have a lot to be thankful for this week of humble national gratitude — for instance, the explosive new revelations as to just exactly how US elections have been rigged, and how, it now appears, Mr. Trump and his people, are prepared to go mad-dog on the sinister forces behind it.
It all unspooled this Thanksgiving week, which is always a kind of a time-out from the urgent realities of the moment. And yet, while you basted your turkey (not a good practice by the way, but that’s another matter), rumors of a mysterious coup (as in coup d’é·tat) were flying all over alt media and social media.
Something or someone (a bunch of someones) have got a very dark op underway, the rumor goes. . . fault lines are opening in the US government. . . we’re in a danger zone.
This supposedly was behind last week’s “Seditionist Six” prank, the slickly produced video arranged by Senator (former CIA official) Elissa Slotkin (D-MI) and sidekick Sen. Mark (“the Astronaut”) Kelly (D-AZ) advising US military personnel about the option to disobey “illegal orders” from the command structure (that is, from President Trump on down). What illegal orders? They did not specify. . . suggesting, perhaps, orders that had not yet been issued, for an emergency as yet also unspecified.
Accept, for now, the uncomfortable fact that our country has entered a miasma of uncertainty.
That is, you don’t know what’s going on. . . but something surely is going on, and it seems sort of, I dunno, momentous. . . something with the odor and flavor of a. . .“color revolution.”
By the way, everybody’s attention got focused instantly the night before Thanksgiving when one Rahmanullah Lakanwal, an Afghan brought to to the US with the 2021 Afghanistan evacuation under Operation Allies Welcome, ambushed two National Guard troops a few blocks from the White House. Specialist Sarah M. Beckstrom, age 24, died from a head wound and Staff Sgt. Andrew J. Wolfe, age 31, remains hospitalized. There was nothing else on the TV news that night except the shooting.
Rahmanullah Lakanwal, turns out, had worked for nine years as a GPS tracker specialist in Unit 03 of the Kandahar Strike Force (aka “Scorpion Forces”), initially under CIA oversight via its Special Activities Division, with some JSOC training, before transitioning to Afghan intelligence. In other words, he was not just some mook with a donkey. He had lately been taken in by a sympathetic American family in Bellingham, WA — a roughly three-thousand-mile journey to Washington DC — where he did his deed. If he flew on an airplane to get there, just how did he manage to smuggle a handgun through airport security? Or did someone, maybe, give him one on arrival in DC? Was he still, one way or another, in the employ of the CIA? I guess we’ll find out.
Now, with the nation’s attention split this week between the DC ambush story and the culinary difficulties of Thanksgiving, the election fraud story unspooled in alt media.
Surprise, surprise! Turns out to be our auld acquaintance, the Kraken? Remember that monster? Eminent DC attorney Sidney Powell, had conniptions over the Kraken in the months after the 2020 election that ushered senile (let’s just say it) “Joe Biden” into the Oval Office for four disastrous years. (After which, Sidney Powell was methodically defamed and prosecuted by mysterious forces.)
Ms. Powell threatened to “release the Kraken,” meaning: a malign combine out of Venezuela had managed to foist Dominion vote tabulation machines all over the USA, but especially in swing vote states, along with Smartmatic software. And all this janky machinery was connected by the Internet through Serbia to the CCP, or something like that. And that this machinery, plus massive voter fraud operations run by Lawfare ninjas Norm Eisen, Marc Elias, and Mary McCord, with help from Mark Zuckerberg’s $400-million Center for Tech and Civic Life org, prestidigitated millions of extra votes needed to push “Joe Biden” into the winner’s circle.
Those of you who stayed up late the November night in 2020 also probably witnessed some impressive magic tricks in the election returns — for instance, the mom-and-daughter team of Ruby Freeman and Wandrea “Shaye” Moss pulling a switcheroo in the Fulton County (Atlanta) election HQ, captured on closed-circuit TV, while vote-counting was shut down for several hours due to a “broken toilet”…
Fulton County, GA, Election HQ, Nov 3, 2020 — the Night of the Broken Toilet.
…and the wondrous vote flipperooski in Michigan…
Michigan Vote Flipperooski, Election Night, 2020
…and the panel trucks delivering bales of extra ballots in the wee hours of morning to the main Philadelphia election HQ…
…and presto-change-o, you got a senile president.
This voter fraud business is evidently a global operation, involving elections in many other countries over several election cycles, carried out by a broad network of NGOs and government agencies, such as the now dismantled USAID, which acted as a money-laundering service for all these ops. A good place to start your own research is independent reporter Emerald Robinson’s “X” account.
Mr. Trump, for one, has always been adamant that the 2020 election was a fraud, but it has taken all year, apparently, to convince White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles that this is so, and now, we’re told, Mr. Trump is about to go after the perps. The hard evidence is there, rumor has it, the receipts, and that is why the Democratic Party is freaking out…
…including that “Seditionist Six” message about refusing orders from the Commander-in-Chief.
The kernel of all this (maybe paranoid, maybe not) is that the DC blob is cornered and that its only hope to escape prosecution, punishment, loss of power and perqs, and possible extinction, is to pull off a coup to bum-rush Mr. Trump out of office by main force.
Meaning, our country might be at war with itself right now. Are perp walks in the offing?
Tyler Durden
Fri, 11/28/2025 – 13:30
https://www.zerohedge.com/political/coup-coup-birds-dc-blob-cornered
Perú convoca ministros para enviar militares a la frontera; Chile busca evitar “crisis humanitaria”
Por NAYARA BATSCHKE
SANTIAGO (AP) — El presidente interino de Perú, José Jerí, anunció el viernes que ha convocado a un Consejo de Ministros para declarar el estado de emergencia en diversos puntos, una medida que incluirá el despliegue de militares en las fronteras en medio de la crisis de inseguridad que afecta al país y la gran afluencia de migrantes en los pasos con Chile.
“Nuestras fronteras se respetan”, indicó el mandatario en un mensaje en X. “Se está convocando a Consejo de Ministros extraordinario para declarar, conforme a lo anunciado, el estado de emergencia y así redoblar esfuerzos con las Fuerzas Armadas en su vigilancia”.
El domingo Jerí anunció su intención de militarizar las fronteras del sur de Perú a fin de contener la violencia que azota a su nación, la que atribuyó en gran medida a la falta de atención en los puntos fronterizos. Expresó además que tanto la policía como los agentes de migraciones intensificarían los controles de identidad.
Pese a que el despliegue militar aún no se hizo efectivo, las autoridades peruanas ya han endurecido los controles en algunas localidades, entre ellas en la frontera con el norte de Chile, donde la tensión alcanzó su ápice el viernes y llevó al gobierno chileno a intensificar los diálogos diplomáticos a fin de evitar una nueva ”crisis humanitaria” en la zona.
En una rueda de prensa en Santiago, el ministro de Seguridad Pública de Chile, Luis Cordero, explicó que “se ha producido una concentración de personas migrantes que desean abandonar el país y han tenido dificultades en su ingreso a Perú” en las últimas horas, por lo que el gobierno acompaña con atención la situación.
“Respecto de los hechos que están ocurriendo en la actualidad, esa conversación se mantiene activa entre ambas cancillerías”, indicó.
La tensión en la frontera de Chile y Perú se produce además en un momento de incertidumbre política en el país antártico, que celebrará el próximo 14 de diciembre la segunda vuelta de unas elecciones presidenciales para las cuales el ultraderechista José Antonio Kast se perfila como favorito.
Kast, líder del Partido Republicano, ha prometido una política de mano dura contra la inmigración irregular y anunció que expulsará a todas las personas indocumentadas del país una vez que su eventual gobierno asuma la presidencia el 11 de marzo.
“A los inmigrantes irregulares en Chile les digo que quedan 103 días para que ustedes salgan voluntariamente de nuestra patria”, volvió a alertar el viernes el ultraderechista en un vídeo subido en X, en el que emplazó al saliente presidente Gabriel Boric a visitar los pasos fronterizos para “hacerse cargo” de la situación.
“Si no salen voluntariamente van a tener que salir posteriormente a que yo asuma la presidencia con lo que tienen puesto”, advirtió.
Migrantes varados y protestas
Desde la noche del jueves localidades fronterizas del extremo norte de Chile, como el complejo Chacalluta, han experimentado un aumento de personas que buscan abandonar el país y han quedado varadas por no contar con los papeles necesarios para cruzar al lado peruano.
La tensión escaló en la tarde del viernes cuando varios de los que intentaban llegar a Perú bloquearon las vías en forma de protesta, lo que llevó a la intervención de Carabineros de Chile.
“Carabineros han comparecido al lugar con control de orden público para efectos de sostener un diálogo y, de lo contrario, se va a producir al desalojo de esas personas para que no sigan interrumpiendo la ruta”, dijo Cordero.
El ministro indicó que el gobierno chileno monitorea la situación en sus fronteras “a diario” y aseguró que los equipos de diversas instituciones, entre ellas la Policía de Investigaciones, Carabineros, Aduanas y control fronterizo, “se encuentran preparados frente a cualquiera contingencia”.
Añadió que Chile mantiene un “diálogo diplomático y de gestión activo” con Perú a fin de evitar una crisis humanitaria similar a la ocurrida en mayo de 2023 cuando decenas de migrantes, en su mayoría venezolanos, quedaron varados durante semanas en esa misma región en ambos lados de la frontera.
“El propósito central, igual que el periodo anterior, es evitar una crisis humanitaria en la zona”, recalcó.
Pese a la concentración de personas en el lugar el flujo de egresos registrado en las últimas semanas es “relativamente normal”, según Cordero, quien agregó que la “única forma” de abordar la situación “éxitosamente” es a través de la “cooperación entre los países fronterizos”.
Chile se volvió uno de los mayores países receptores de inmigración en América Latina en los últimos años y uno de los principales destinos para los que huyen de las crisis en sus países, en especial Venezuela.
La población migrante pasó de 0,8% en 1992 a 8,8% en la actualidad, según los datos del Censo 2024. De éstos, un 41,6% son venezolanos.
El flujo migratorio descontrolado se convirtió en uno de los ejes de la carrera electoral por la presidencia ya que muchos chilenos, incluso el gobierno, vinculan la llegada masiva de extranjeros con un aumento de la delincuencia.
Letters to the Editor: Data center supported by commission doesn’t belong here; why is crisis intervention team needed now?
Data center supported by commission doesn’t belong here
Re the article titled “Panel votes in favor of data center” in the Nov. 21 edition of the Naperville Sun, I never knew this project proposal existed. The former Lucent site is quiet and surrounded by families and greenery.
If a huge water-guzzling, diesel-powered set of engines is “proposed,” the commission needs to air that broadly and loudly to all nearby residents. Reading about some 8-1 “decision” in the paper with zero buy-in from the community is beyond unacceptable.
To Naperville Planning and Zoning Commissioner Whitney Robbins: please do your job better, for all our sakes. If you and eight people “steward” this land, you are getting very far — indeed, 180 degrees opposite — from your duties. No such data center belongs here, and you and we need to ensure the environment and healthy social aspects of this area remain free and protected.
Kudos to Commissioner Courtney Naumes for leading the way.
Let’s be real: Ms. Robbins’ comments about existing noise and pollution essentially meant, “There’s some noise on I-88 sometimes so let’s simply let the entire town go to pot.” Nope. Let’s do our jobs.
Shannon Pouran Dobson, Naperville
No reason for why for crisis intervention team needed now
It is difficult to vote against funding for the Naperville Police Department or mental health services because both are framed as essential to the well-being of our community. However, what was/is the driving reason we need the Mobile Crisis Intervention Team (MCIT) at a cost to taxpayers of about $1.25 million annually?
The NPD is recognized as one of the best — 93% of our officers are trained and certified in crisis intervention. Also, Police Chief Jason Arres has indicated the department doesn’t have issues investigating or prosecuting cases. If this is so important, why can’t an MCIT be funded from the existing budget or by cutting expense from the general fund?
I also found it disturbing that Mayor Scott Wehrli offered a compromise to slow the implementation to make sure the city can afford it in the future but it was rejected by Naperville City Council, namely Councilman Ian Holzhauer. There’s more to this story than what’s been presented.
Gary Kochanek, Naperville
DuPage GOP wants election, vote-by-mail system review
The DuPage GOP calls for an immediate public hearing on the topic of election integrity, our voter rolls and the process by which vote-by-mail ballots are being distributed, collected and counted. We believe the DuPage County clerk’s office should make itself available to participate and to answer respectful questions about election integrity.
We welcome the participation of the League of Women Voters and DuPage County’s Democratic Party in this public hearing should it proceed.
Confidence in the integrity of our elections is at an all-time low. It’s abundantly clear there are a great many DuPage voters who do not trust vote-by-mail and who believe games are being played with how these ballots are distributed, collected and counted. General questions about our voter rolls also continue to persist.
Let’s talk about these concerns openly, transparently and publicly. We will keep all questions respectful and sincere. We hope this call is accepted by the clerk’s office. We also hope the other mentioned stakeholders participate. We call on this hearing to take place within 90 days and before the 2026 primary.
Kevin Coyne
Chairman, DuPage GOP
Dem senators who voted to reopen government need to leave
This letter is to the eight Democrat U.S. senators who caved and voted with their Republican counterparts to end the shutdown and reopen the government.
I am one of thousands, perhaps millions, of Americans who are grateful you were not an advisor to Winston Churchill during the World War II’s Battle of Britain. If you don’t have the stomach to fight for what’s right, get out of politics.
Joseph P. Drago, Naperville
Share your views
Submit letters to the editor via email to suburbanletters@tribpub.com. Please include your name, address and town of residence for publication. We also need your phone number and email address for confirmation. Letters should be no more than 400 words.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/11/28/letters-naperville-data-center-election-mcit-reopen/
What Is Going On With The Economy?
What Is Going On With The Economy?
Authored by Ben Shapiro via The Epoch Times,
The fate of the Trump administration – and perhaps Republicans in Congress – is tethered to how Americans feel about the economy.
And right now, it’s hard to find anyone who can say with confidence what the hell is going on.
Nov. 20 offered a fresh reminder of the chaos. As The Wall Street Journal noted, “Stocks surrendered gains and closed sharply lower after a whirlwind day of trading that began after Nvidia posted strong results. The Nasdaq composite led indexes lower after being up on the day more than 2 percent. It closed 2.2 percent lower. Nvidia gave up an even bigger gain and finished the day down 3.2 percent.”
Why the reversal? Because investors suspect there is, in fact, an artificial intelligence bubble.
It’s not an unreasonable fear.
History shows that every transformative technology—from automobiles to the internet—inspires waves of speculation. The presence of a bubble doesn’t mean the technology isn’t revolutionary; it simply means that early hype tends to sweep up both the winners and the doomed. For every Henry Ford, there were dozens of forgotten carmakers. The same was true of the dot-com era: Pets.com vanished, but the internet went on to reorganize modern life.
Artificial intelligence is inspiring the same mix of excitement and dread.
Some companies may never produce the margins to justify today’s investment frenzy. OpenAI, though not publicly traded, sits at the center of countless partnerships with massive firms like Oracle and Nvidia. If it stumbles, the shock could reverberate across the market.
The numbers fueling today’s optimism are staggering. As The New York Times reported, “It would not be a stretch to describe this period of hyperactive growth in the tech industry as a historic moment. Nvidia, which makes computer chips that are essential to building artificial intelligence, said on Wednesday that its quarterly profit had jumped to nearly $32 billion, up 65 percent from a year earlier and 245 percent from the year before that. Just three weeks ago, Nvidia became the first publicly traded company to be worth $5 trillion.” That’s more than Germany’s entire economy.
But even this explosion of wealth comes with a caveat. Much of the demand for Nvidia’s chips doesn’t mean consumers want AI right now—it means companies are racing to build massive AI systems in the hope that demand will materialize later. To some insiders, it looks less like a revolution and more like a house of cards.
This is the central question: At what point will AI’s promised productivity gains begin to match the scale of the investment poured into it? Until there’s clarity, markets will continue to swing wildly—and so will public confidence.
Workers, meanwhile, face their own concerns. Even if AI succeeds, technological progress has always brought job dislocation. Old roles disappear, new industries emerge, and the economy ultimately becomes more productive. People enjoy better goods at lower costs and work fewer hours than their grandparents did. But the transition is rarely painless.
Both truths can coexist: The United States may be on the cusp of a remarkable economic transformation, and the anxiety surrounding it may be entirely justified.
For now, Americans are left watching markets fluctuate, industries reorganize, and fortunes rise and fall… all while wondering what exactly the future will bring.
And no government policy can fully soothe that uncertainty.
Tyler Durden
Fri, 11/28/2025 – 12:40
